Post by Scumhunter on Mar 31, 2017 2:18:48 GMT -5

SUMMIT — Nearly eight months since Eric Dean Garcia was found dead in the Santa Cruz Mountains, members of his family are trying to solve a homicide that investigators say has gone cold.

Garcia, 32, was a fun-loving and social person who was a member of the Mongols Motorcycle Club, his family said. Garcia was last seen Sept. 19, 2012 inside Park Lane Lounge in San Jose, where he talked to a man who wore a Ghost Mountain Riders Motorcycle Club jacket.

Christina Johnson, Garcia’s sister-in-law, said she didn’t know how deeply Garcia was involved in motorcycle clubs, nor if it played a role in his death.

“We just want to figure out why this happened. Why was he murdered? What was so important to take his life?” Johnson asked Thursday. “You can’t have full closure until you understand why.”

Johnson, who lives in Santa Clara County and is married to Garcia’s brother, said about 1,500 people attended Garcia’s funeral.

Garcia grew up in the San Jose area and lived in Saratoga with his brother during the week. They worked on communications installation jobs, and Garcia usually stayed in Turlock on the weekends.

Garcia had broken up with his girlfriend around the time of his disappearance, Johnson said. He planned to move to Modesto to start fresh.

“He was really excited about the future, which is why this is so heart-wrenching,” Johnson said.

Garcia was reported missing in late September 2012. A hiker found Garcia’s

remains in the Mount Bache area of the Santa Cruz Mountains on Oct. 13, 2012.

Investigators have not said how or when they believe Garcia was killed. His Harley-Davidson motorcycle has not been found. April Skalland, a deputy with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, has said the case has been difficult in part because Garcia’s contacts are mainly in Santa Clara County.

“Our case, as it stands, is a cold case because we don’t have any new leads,” Skalland said this week.

In March, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office released an image of the Ghost Mountain Riders logo to try to jog the memories of San Jose bar patrons who might have seen Garcia the night he vanished.

Johnson said Garcia’s family recently hired a private investigator to probe the case. They also continued to raise money for what they hope will be a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

Johnson said she appreciated the help of the Sheriff’s Office, but she was frustrated with the pace of the investigation.

“You think it’s going to happen like in the movies and on TV. We found Eric and you’d think there’d be an arrest coming,” Johnson said. “It just doesn’t work the way you’d hope.”

She and other members of Garcia’s family also recently started a nonprofit group called Eric’s Angels, which hopes to empower and advocate for families of homicide victims. The group aims to help families find media sources to publicize cases and help them pay for private investigators if needed.

“I really just encourage people, if they have any information on Eric, to come forward anonymously,” Johnson said.

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office asks anyone with information to call 831-471-1121.

Thoughts? For what it's worth here is the Ghost Mountain Riders logo (I want to stress none of their members have been named as persons of interest at the moment as far as I can tell (besides that one man Eric was seen talking to I'm assuming police want to speak with) and Eric's death could wind up having nothing to do with the group):

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